Coast Guard Officer Subspecialty · Engineering

CG-OAF11 Aids to Navigation

An officer subspecialty earned alongside a primary designator, marking advanced education or experience in this field.

Overview

Aids to Navigation officers establish, maintain, and operate short range navigation aid systems. They support mariner safety on the high seas and waters under United States jurisdiction.

Core Skills

  • navigation aid operations
  • buoy system management
  • maritime navigation
  • waterway hazard assessment
  • marine electronics
  • hydrographic positioning
  • maintenance planning
  • navigation safety reporting
  • field team coordination

Civilian Software & Tools

  • ESRI ArcGIS software
  • Bentley MicroStation
  • Autodesk AutoCAD
  • Circuit evaluation software
  • Computerized maintenance management system CMMS
  • Microsoft Project
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft SharePoint

Civilian Career Paths

  • Electrical Engineering
  • Facilities Management
  • Project Management

Training & Development

Getting Started

  • National Able Seafarer (A/B)
  • Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM) · Funded
  • Associate Safety Professional (ASP) · Funded

Career Growth

  • Construction Health and Safety Technician (CHST) · Funded
  • Certified Safety Professional (CSP) · Funded
  • Certified Hazardous Materials Manager (CHMM) · Funded

What the Work Involves

  • Modify, maintain, or repair electronics equipment or systems to ensure proper functioning.
  • Set up and operate specialized or standard test equipment to diagnose, test, or analyze the performance of electronic components, assemblies, or systems.
  • Maintain equipment logs that record performance problems, repairs, calibrations, or tests.
  • Create and modify maps, graphs, or diagrams, using geographical information software and related equipment, and principles of cartography, such as coordinate systems, longitude, latitude, elevation, topography, and map scales.
  • Inspect and monitor work areas, examine tools and equipment, and provide employee safety training to prevent, detect, and correct unsafe conditions or violations of procedures and safety rules.

Related Occupations

  • Geographic Information Systems Technologists and Technicians
  • Data Scientists
  • Logisticians
  • Environmental Compliance Inspectors

Typical preparation for these civilian roles: a four-year degree or equivalent experience.

Defense contractor jobs for CG-OAF11

Descriptions may be summarized for clarity. Verify all information with your branch career counselor or official military documentation before making career decisions.

Report an error on this page